Muscle Leggings: For When You’d Rather Look Like Fresh Meat

You know what’s so great about the human body? Skin. It’s that extra top layer of dead cells that covers up our tissues, muscles, bones, and otherwise, meat-looking parts. It’s a good thing. But what’s probably not such a good thing is strutting around in a pair of leggings that show exactly what you wished…

Nat Kaplan Print Dress at lollyPOP Vintage

Each week Gem features one standout piece from a local shop. Whether it’s a jacket, necklace, or handbag, it’s on our have-to-have list. What: This vintage print dress in aqua and white from Nat Kaplan (a label that ceased production circa 1986) is a light, airy spring wardrobe addition –…

Renew Your Vows and Undying Love this Weekend at Monsterland

Creepy couples rejoice — this weekend is full of opportunities to express your feelings for one another while flying your tattered, blood-soaked flags. This weekend, for $10, the “Sinister Minister” will renew your vows or perform a commitment ceremony in one of Monsterland’s creepy sets and sign a certificate of…

The Kissenger: First Base Just Got Robotic

Just in time for national make-out day comes the robot that makes it all sendable to your “long-distance” (read: virtual) girlfriend via robot. The Kissenger, brought to you by the brain trust behind the Mini-Surrogate and the Lovotics Robot, is a two-“lipped,” computer-controlled robot that transfers a “kiss” through communication interfaces…

The Six Coolest Carts at The Phoenix Idiotarod

If you happened to spy bizarrely dressed groups of people pushing equally weird-looking shopping carts along the sidewalks of downtown Phoenix over the weekend, you weren’t hallucinating. The Arizona Cacophony Society held the annual Phoenix Idiotarod on Saturday afternoon and caused plenty of colorful chaos as more than 30 teams…

Downtown’s First Friday (Feb. 3)

Art walks are more often about people watching and shenanigans and less about the actual art. We’re here to guide you through both. Presenting our very own Field Guide — an evolving guide to art walks around town. From time to time, we’ll introduce some of our favorite spots and…

Meat Market Vintage Now Open on Mill Avenue

A couple months back, after spending an afternoon drooling over eBay shop Meat Market Vintage’s eclectic, sometimes out-there stock, we mooned over the possibility that the couple who run the online store, Cory Martinez and Ben Funke, might someday have a place where we could admire their funky wares IRL…

Dress Pant Sweatpants: Oh, Give Up Already.

It’s Monday. And if you’re headed to any environment with four walls, a computer, and a semi-professional coworker or two, it means you’re going to work. But why bother getting all dressed up for the beginning of the week? Who says “Dress for the job you want,” anyway? Thanks to…

The Seven Greatest Names for Strip Clubs … All Found in Phoenix

Strip club owners will try absolutely anything to get you to step through their front door (preferably with pockets full of cash). For many of the Valley’s numerous ecdysiast parlors, it means two-for-one drink deals, theme nights, or special appearances by porn stars. Other establishments, however, entice patrons by giving their…

Spotted: Arizona, the Land of History and Mystery (c. 1925)

If you can’t make the trip out to the The Boston Public Library to take a long, drooling look at its print department, take advantage of its updated flickr set.  Recently added, was an album of the library’s poster collection, including more than 350 vintage travel posters from the 1920s…

Avengers Cologne: Oh Yeah, We’re Sure the Hulk Smelled Grrreeeeaaat

Fair warning: Just because you smell like Thor doesn’t mean you’re going to score Natalie Portman — or any girl for that matter. In fact, there’s no guarantee of any direct (or physical) benefit of smelling like a big, sweaty superhero, but that hasn’t stopped fragrance company JADS international from releasing…